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I Have A Strong Relationship With Nature
A Birch Tree’s Year follows a big birch tree in a family’s yard who shares its feelings on watching the family grow and the changing seasons of the year. What was the inspiration for your story?
I have always had a strong relationship with nature. It is a very personal connection, and I often feel that individual elements of nature speak to me directly. I strongly feel the change of seasons, too. It affects all my being and thinking.
In my childhood, I lived for a meaningful decade in the middle of the beautiful Finnish lake district. Since then, the detailed images of everything I have seen and experienced have been drawn into the depths of my soul.
I can still go to my favorite places in my imagination whenever I want to. I can imagine wandering in the middle of a blooming meadow near my home. From there, I collected over a hundred plants for school biology classes, dried and labeled them carefully in a folder.
Trees are one of my greatest joys in nature. I am happy about their diversity and the shelter they provide for the nesting birds with their branches. This is important for me, as I’m also a fan of birds and birdsong!
Birch is an important tree for us Finns. It also has great symbolic value due to the sensitivity associated with it. This extraordinary tree changes with the seasons from a bare and stripped winter version to a plentiful and strong green summer birch tree. My favorite is the spring birch, which is just beginning to promise the arrival of summer by pushing out tiny light green buds.
What is your favorite season and why?
The substantial changes in the seasons in Finland mean a lot to me. This cycle of nature gives rhythm to the whole human life. Experiences in winter’s white, frozen nature are entirely different from those in the middle of blooming summer. Here is the richness of life!
However, I must admit that I am a spring and summer person. Especially that turning point is wonderful! Schools are ending, and summer vacations are ahead. People are full of dreams and plans. They think about traveling, meeting friends and relatives, digging and planting in gardens, walking in parks, and picking berries in the forest.
Spring and the beginning of summer are always intense experiences for me – year after year. I can’t help but admire the power of nature after winter. My ideal summer is as peaceful as possible. I need time to look at and listen to the blooming nature around me. I try to avoid traveling and doing too much work.
Of course, I can’t stop writing even in the summer. Then I have time to focus on a different kind of writing than in the winter. I always have some novels for adult readers in the making. But I don’t know how many summers it will take to complete them!
What were some educational aspects that were important for you to include in this children’s book?
I consider it essential that people and nature live in harmony with each other. It is good that children learn to respect nature in all its forms. Even that single tree next to the house can be very important to everyone living near it.
In my book, A Birch Tree’s Year, this connection between people, animals, and plants is examined by going through the life of the family, their house, and the yard around it in all months of the year. The point of view of the birch tree is emphasized because it offers quite a drama. There is the depression of autumn, the frosts of winter, the candles of Christmas, and finally, a new life at the dawn of spring with the pleasures of summertime to follow.
Although this is a fairy tale and can be taken just like that, I also want to highlight nature’s enormous power and influence on us humans. That union with the rest of nature is also a prerequisite for our well-being as people.
And it wouldn’t be bad at all if the children reading the fairy tale looked at the familiar yard tree with new eyes the next time. They could even experience its presence in a new, more sensitive way.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I got very excited about this question because I have a lot of good news!
The fourth book in the familiar Fox Series is in the illustration. I’ve already seen the storyboarding by illustrator Andrea Alemanno for The Fox’s New Channel. My fox continues his crooked games, this time brazenly using new media and fake news.
My new illustrator, Iva Dukić in Croatia, currently illustrates my book Friends and Rivals. The prince brothers in the book end up in a bitter struggle for the crown and the throne. Fortunately, at the end of the book, the other brother returns to his brother’s side. The sad thing is that it took almost a lifetime in the dungeon.
I would like to highlight the third novelty, which is already well into the illustration. The Ukrainian Sofia Panchyshyn – the sister of the illustrator Roksolana, known from many of my other books – has taken up her delicate brush. Sofia’s gentle touch creates a magical and plentiful illustration for my story, The Bird Prison. In this book, we follow Griselda, who hates colorful birds nesting in her perfect garden with color harmony and begins a merciless battle against them.
We should get all these books in Wicwick’s fall/winter publishing schedule. I look forward to presenting them to readers and international partners. Since I’m so excited about the illustrations for the upcoming books, I’ve already been posting a few tastings of the artists’ works on my social media channels.
Author Links: Facebook | Website
For the birch, the year is full of changes: the warmth of summer; the wistful farewells of autumn; the chill of winter; and the miracle of growth in spring. The birch is often the center of life for the children playing in the yard, but sometimes the birch is left all alone.
In this book, each month depicts a vignette in the life of the birch and its surroundings. The tree and the family are in an ongoing, delicate interaction–from one day, one month, and one year, to another.
A Birch Tree’s Year
A Birch Tree’s Year by Tuula Pere follows a sapling that has grown into a big birch tree. We follow this birch tree and the family the birch is near as the birch experiences the changes in the season. We start in the month of January as there is a severe winter frost, and from there, we move into the year as the snow starts to melt and the birch begins to grow leaves in preparation for spring. Next, we experience the love and laughter the birch tree feels, being able to experience summer with the family that the tree is next to. Finally, we experience the changing of the leaves in preparation for autumn, and this is the moment the birch realizes that it will soon be lonely again as the winter season approaches.
Tuula Pere offers readers a beautiful story that takes readers through the changes in the seasons but also the different months of the year. I found it adorable that the birch tree enjoyed the family it watched over and especially looked forward to the summertime when birds would visit, and the children would play outside near the tree. However, I found November to be a melancholy month because the birch begins to feel lonely as the winter chill rolls in. Pere’s storytelling is beautiful and showcases the relationship between the birch and the family that lives next to it. The author paints a vivid picture of the birch tree’s life, making it impossible not to feel a deep connection to this magnificent tree.
The Birch Tree is a heartwarming story that teaches young readers the importance of nature and the beauty that surrounds us. I recommend this magical story to those who enjoy a book about nature and human interaction.
Pages: 34 | ISBN : 9523570153
Tierra Day
When Tierra joins her eagle friend Eli for a walk along a nature trail, they are dismayed at the amount of trash scattered around the landscape. They meet up with Monte Mountain Lion on the trail and brainstorm ways to clean up land together. They devise a plan to hold Tierra Day on Earth Day, a celebration and community clean-up event to help humans and animals.
Tierra Day, written by Rachel Bate, is an inspiring children’s book that teaches the importance of recycling and cleaning up after yourself. The story talks about how keeping the Earth clean is a community effort. One person alone can not do it all, and this story highlights the value of getting the entire community involved. The animals even work together to surprise the humans on this special day.
The artwork done by Rebecca Jacob is beautiful and colorful. The paintings will appeal to children with their vivid colors and textures. I especially liked Monty; his expressions made me laugh.
At the end of this educational book is a fact sheet on Earth Day and a glossary; this makes it perfect for classrooms and teachers to use for a lesson on Earth Day. Many children’s books on Earth Day focus just on actually cleaning up and the importance of recycling. What stood out for me in this book was that the planning was discussed. The author emphasizes how important it is to get the word out and get involvement from the community, even the Mayor and Governor. This shows children that it is the responsibility of all people, no matter how important their jobs are, to help keep the Earth clean and trash-free.
Tierra Day is a well-thought-out and written children’s book with an important message about doing your part to keep your community clean. This book would be excellent for anyone who wants to teach children the importance of recycling and how taking care of the Earth impacts not just humans but the animals we share the planet with.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B0BGZXNCWV
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic
Pixie and Trixie Van Dimple are enjoying a day at the seaside with their family. After telling their dad, they were going to the loo, they sneak off to the sweet shop. After enjoying their finds, they realize they need to hide the evidence, but there is no trash or recycling bin in sight. So Pixie does the one thing she can think of, lets the plastic bag of trash fly off in the wind, straight into the sea. Thinking they are free and clear, they continue with their day. Soon though, from the water arises a monster. It is made out of all the discarded plastic, and trash humans have carelessly tossed away. This causes a worldwide incident, and the ECO Defense system is activated. Can Earth be saved from this plastic trash monster?
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic, written by Lynn McAllister, is an exciting children’s book that teaches about the dangers of throwing away plastic and especially tossing it into the ocean. It also highlights how communication lines run through the ocean seabed, and when trash is littered through the ocean, it can impact the world’s ability to communicate. The characters are dramatic and entertaining and are portrayed in a manner that will appeal to preteen readers using examples of social media as a way of reporting the disaster at hand. The rhyming narrative adds to the humor of the story and adds a fun twist to a monster tale. In addition, the illustrations add to the humor and strengthen the emotions the author is portraying. There are many terms and abbreviations in this book, which gives families and classes a variety of things to discuss, covering multiple subjects.
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic is an educational children’s adventure book that will appeal to older elementary readers. The colorful illustrations and lyrical text will keep them engaged as they follow the drama of Pixie and her family. With lessons on the importance of recycling, taking care of the Earth, and protecting our oceans and wildlife, this will make an excellent storybook for a classroom or library.
Pages: 34 | ASIN : B0BCH2Q6MM
LITERARY TITAN 